DW's 40th B-Day

[Explodo]

So the big year is upon us...She's turning 29 (+11)

I'm in the throes of Planning her birthday party. She's a former rugby player and I'm trying to get all of her former team mates back together for her party...NOw here's the issue:

What other plans should I be making?

If you were or have turned 40, what did you like or dislike? Help us poor males out a bit ladies...For the love of all that is good and holy (And save me from missing something she can beat me with for the rest of our days...or at least for the next decade )

 

[RUDisney]

Are you planning a surprise party or does she know about it?

I'd have been happy if DH planned a party for me. Buy her something nice, too, so she'll have something to remember the occasion. See if her Mom has an old photo of her family that you can have framed. That would show effort on the present side as well as on the party planning side.

I wanted to throw a surprise roast for my DH's 40th. I had the venue, roasters lined up and a guest list written. Then we get the bill for the tile we had laid in our 3 bathrooms. It was triple the price of what my DH told me it would be. (I know that when he gives me a number I should double it, since he lowballs numbers so I'll say yes.) I didn't expect it to be that much more.

So, instead of a party, I told him that each time he went into a bathroom, he should look at the floor and think, "surprise!" He was happy not to be roasted.

 

[DizBelle]

I can tell you what not to do. Don't go to Yak and Yeti at AK and order and eat an undercooked hamburger so that you have to spend her birthday in the emergency room and she has to watch you being really uncomfortable.

The upside is that it will really take her mind off of turning 40.


As for me, I'm claiming a birthday do over on our trip this year.

 

[DisneyTarheel]

Timely thread. Mind if I mooch?

 

[ckay87]

DH threw me a nice little 40th party. I was wishing people wouldn't have brought gifts, but he said he told them not to, but they did anyway. I do suggest adding that to your invite. I feel like it's kind of classier to specify that we're not little kids looking for presents. Or maybe that's just me.

One activity that was pretty neat was that he gave index cards (the bigger ones) to people and asked them to write a special memory or how they most fondly think of me (I forget the exact "rules.") Those were put in an album which they gave me at the end of the party. That's a pretty neat thing to have. Kind of like a yearbook signing, just for me, but 22 years after high school!

He decorated pretty nicely with some massive balloons that reminded him of me - palm trees, jukebox, Mickey Mouse. Neat.

Otherwise, I appreciated the opportunity just to mingle. Anything too structured and it does seem more like a shower than a party.

Have fun!

 

[tiggerlover]

For me personally, it is about feeling special. Try to make her feel like a million bucks. You could start by leaving a birthday greeting on the bathroom mirror. Flowers are always a nice touch, for my 40th my flowers were in a cake box and were shaped like a cake, they even came with candles. How about a letter telling your wife 40 things that you love about her or your life with her. A special gift, these are some of the things that would make any birthday a great one.

 

[NewDCLGuy]

Wouldn't it make more sense to ask HER instead of us?

 

[marcyinPA]

Make sure she wants a party before you go through all the trouble of planning it. When I turned 40, I told DH no party. We went on a cruise instead.

My very close girlfriends did throw me a surprise birthday luncheon, and it was wonderful. My DH was involved in getting me there. I enjoyed a girls party so much more than I would have a full-blown "rent a hall and a caterer" bash. I guess I like the more intimate atmosphere!